Travers Aftermath: Top Four Finishers Recover Well

Two days after the Travers Stakes (gr. I) at Saratoga Race Course, the top four finishers in the $1-million race were all recovering well to the satisfaction of their trainers.

Street Sense, winner of the Aug. 25 event, went to the track Aug. 26 on his normal post-race regimen, jogging one mile at Saratoga.

"He jogged his mile and did it good and played a little bit," trainer Carl Nafzger said of James Tafel's son of Street Cry. "He's an exceptional horse. He has met every challenge. He got a little heat stressed immediately after the race, because he had to stand there in the winner's circle and we couldn't get the saddle off and get the air to him. But we got water on him and got him cooled down and he was fine. He's doing great, and he came out of the race great. It's perfect."

Neil Howard, trainer of second-place finisher Grasshopper, said the son of Dixie Unionwalked the shedrow Aug. 27 and appeared to have handled the hard-fought stretch duel in good order.

"The weather cooled out a little, which I'm sure will help," said Howard, noting the morning's 59-degree temperature. "He ran a hard race on a hot day and we were all just ecstatic. He's one of those horses that's a pleasure to be around and he tries so hard, he's so consistent, and he looks like he's improving. I do think Grasshopper has a future as a very good horse, and we're going to try and go about choosing his career path in a judicious manner."

Helsinki, a Distorted Humor colt trained by Nick Zito, came out of the race well after finishing third by 10 1/4-lengths.

"I knew he was a live longshot," Zito said. "He ran great, he looked like a mile-and-a-quarter horse, and he is. He'll stay in distance races. I'm not sure what his next start will be."

Trainer Shug McGaughey said there was no apparent reason for Sightseeing's fourth-place finish, and that he seemed fine two days after the race.

"He didn't run very good, and why he didn't run any better, I honestly don't know," McGaughey said. "I was very disappointed but I don't have a reason for his performance. I still think he's a distance horse, and I've just gotta figure out where the switch is."

McGaughey said he may consider turf as an option for the son of Pulpit.